[Pinewood]

Just got a small refund back from the tax man, and so I'm looking at the 512G from Halfords UK @ £160.
My intention is to mount it behind the rear view mirror (passenger side) , hard wired. Does anyone have experience of how to hard wire it, and take the power?
Secondly - is the nextbase 512G the best bang for buck dashcam?

[Peter_R]

Originally Posted by Pinewood

Just got a small refund back from the tax man, and so I'm looking at the 512G from Halfords UK @ £160.
My intention is to mount it behind the rear view mirror (passenger side) , hard wired. Does anyone have experience of how to hard wire it, and take the power?
Secondly - is the nextbase 512G the best bang for buck dashcam?

Have a read of the review here..
http://www.pcadvisor.co.uk/review/ca...eview-3634274/
Then there is...
http://www.proofcam.com/rac-07s-gps-...eo-dash-cam-63

You need to look very closely at the mounting on the windscreen and the removal of the sd card (see comments in the first review) and whether it will record whilst the car is parked in the car park for an hour or more.

I have been running a mobius dashcam for two years now, and been looking at the rac 07 gps along with others. I have not moved to purchase any of them because I cannot make up my mind.

Also a good read, but does only cover a few on the market..
http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/accesso...-cam-test-2016


You do know there is a BMW dashcam?
http://www.bowkerblackburnbmw.co.uk/...om-329-fitted/

Good luck with your purchase and please let us know how you get on with it.

[Smithy2014]

I have the 512G and can say the quality is amazing, cannot fault it, I have mine semi-hardwired, basically the cable fits in the headlining down the inside of the a pillar and is then clipped in place with some clips I purchased in the passenger footwell, it then passes behind a 'edge' in the dash and pops out by the cupholders, all of have to do is plug in it both ends and job done and I can take it out when I want to. The inbuilt battery lasts only 10 minutes so if you want if working when you are not in the vehicle you will need to hardwire it. One problem I had was that the suction mount won't stick to the black area on the windscreen around the rear view mirror mount meaning I had to stick it lower down than I wanted to. I also found the supplied software to be very poor - kept crashing - found it easier to simply take the card out and download onto my computer to view through media player

[Peter_R]

Originally Posted by Smithy2014

I have the 512G and can say the quality is amazing, cannot fault it, I have mine semi-hardwired, basically the cable fits in the headlining down the inside of the a pillar and is then clipped in place with some clips I purchased in the passenger footwell, it then passes behind a 'edge' in the dash and pops out by the cupholders, all of have to do is plug in it both ends and job done and I can take it out when I want to. The inbuilt battery lasts only 10 minutes so if you want if working when you are not in the vehicle you will need to hardwire it. One problem I had was that the suction mount won't stick to the black area on the windscreen around the rear view mirror mount meaning I had to stick it lower down than I wanted to. I also found the supplied software to be very poor - kept crashing - found it easier to simply take the card out and download onto my computer to view through media player

This not sticking to the black area is a show stopper for me. My idea of having dashcam in the vehicle is to have it hidden discretely behind the mirror.

My Mobius is sitting up on top of the mirror and attached using industrial velcro and is completely invisible. I take the card out of it with tweezers if I wish to view it.

The majority of dashcams now give great results using 1080p picture quality.

[Smithy2014]

Its a wonder BMW don't do a built in dashcam - I mean there are already enough camera's in the vehicle for reversing, blind spot monitoring etc, surely wouldn't be expensive to do. I see the new Citroen C3 is offering a built in system as standard...

[Peter_R]

Originally Posted by Smithy2014

Its a wonder BMW don't do a built in dashcam - I mean there are already enough camera's in the vehicle for reversing, blind spot monitoring etc, surely wouldn't be expensive to do. I see the new Citroen C3 is offering a built in system as standard...

I am surprised as well. Being BMW there is bound to be an illogical reason. Perhaps they are looking to get one that costs them £10.00 to source from China and fit into the vehicle and then charge the customer £350 for the privilege.

[poiuytre111]

I am starting from zero in my search for a dashcam and would be interested in your experience Peter with a mobius. I has assumed I would want a cam (or two) that could deal with front and rear aspects but the small size of the mobius would be a major positive.

[Pinewood]

Originally Posted by Smithy2014

I have the 512G and can say the quality is amazing, cannot fault it, I have mine semi-hardwired, basically the cable fits in the headlining down the inside of the a pillar and is then clipped in place with some clips I purchased in the passenger footwell, it then passes behind a 'edge' in the dash and pops out by the cupholders, all of have to do is plug in it both ends and job done and I can take it out when I want to. The inbuilt battery lasts only 10 minutes so if you want if working when you are not in the vehicle you will need to hardwire it. One problem I had was that the suction mount won't stick to the black area on the windscreen around the rear view mirror mount meaning I had to stick it lower down than I wanted to. I also found the supplied software to be very poor - kept crashing - found it easier to simply take the card out and download onto my computer to view through media player

@Peter_R and @Smithy2014
thanks for your insights. I tried my GoPro Hero 4 before posting, and had the same issue. The windscreen mount won't grip on the black mesh that surrounds the rear view mirror, with the result that it sat further down, and in view of me and anyone walking by
having spent the afternoon reading up on the various options, it's a toss up between the nextbase 512G and the RAC 05/07.
I'll go to Halfrauds and take a look at the 512G and see if there is a way to Velcro it to the back of the rear view mirror?

Peter - could you show us a pic of how the Mobius is mounted please?

[Peter_R]

OK. I am very busy at present, but as soon as I can locate the pictures of the Mobius camera mounted (temporarily) on top of the mirror. I will post them.

[Peter_R]

@Pinewood
@poiuytre111

OK. Here is the temporary solution for the Mobius to see how it works. It does fine! Having said that, I cannot see how I can make it any different so it is staying as it is (permanent).

1. Up close and personal showing piece of plastic used to superglue the mounting bracket and then attaching the industrial velcro to top of the mirror and to the side of the rear view mirror boss. The velcro is from Halfords.

2. Next picture from open door on passenger side.

3. Photo pointing directly at the windscreen. Top red ring is the mobius heat sink. Bottom red ring is the lens. Who would know there was a camera there?

4. USB power adaptor to cigarette lighter in rear passenger compartment. If you do not have that extra, you could go to the armrest one or even to the boot (trunk).

5. The power cable runs round the headlining down the pillar and under the carpets. It is not the one that comes with the mobius. I sourced it from on the internet and made sure I got one (all pins connected) that I could connect to the laptop for software updating. No point in showing you any picks because there is nothing to see. It connects to the cigarette lighter socket in the rear passenger compartment. I have used USB adaptors to turn it at an angle. Not ideal if you have children because they could kick it. I just let passengers know.

Note. The camera cannot be seen from the front of the car (Photo 3) and you have to look very carefully from the side windows, but you cannot see what it is.

[Pinewood]

That does look very tidy Peter. I dug a little deeper into the Nextbase offerings, and there are many people complaining about the internal battery only lasting a year (just after the warranty expires). The results in the last file not being copied (probably the one you require the most if an incident was recorded en route).
The transcend drivepro 200 uses a capaictor instead of a battery, and hence it can tolerate a wider heat range and is less prone to failure.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/...A3P5ROKL5A1OLE

The latest version (2016) also has a battery, but no details about what the battery is used for. I think this is the one i have settled on, as i drive a fair bit at night/winter evenings, and prefer the night quality over the mobius. cost is £89.90 which includes the 32Gb SD card

[Peter_R]

Originally Posted by Pinewood

That does look very tidy Peter. I dug a little deeper into the Nextbase offerings, and there are many people complaining about the internal battery only lasting a year (just after the warranty expires). The results in the last file not being copied (probably the one you require the most if an incident was recorded en route).
The transcend drivepro 200 uses a capaictor instead of a battery, and hence it can tolerate a wider heat range and is less prone to failure.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/...A3P5ROKL5A1OLE

The latest version (2016) also has a battery, but no details about what the battery is used for. I think this is the one i have settled on, as i drive a fair bit at night/winter evenings, and prefer the night quality over the mobius. cost is £89.90 which includes the 32Gb SD card

I would be interested in your findings once you have fitted it.

[Peter_R]

You guys know about Techmoan? I have been watching his etchings for years...

Also there are more.....

https://www.google.co.uk/webhp?sourc...ashcam+reviews

@Pinewood

How about the Transcend 220...

Then the author reviews the Transcend 520...

[Pinewood]

I eventually went for the ddpai M6+ after seeing techmoan's review, and doing some research on the various dashcam's available.

http://www.techmoan.com/blog/2016/6/...-ive-used.html

I particularly like ...
wifi,
gps,
magnetic mount for quick removal,
decent phone app for setup and video viewing,
OTA firmware upgrades,
time lapse and parkguard facility if connected to a battery pack.

It should arrive in 8-10 days time, so I'll post some pics/comments once installed.
It's quite likely I will also install a möbius dashcam in the rear, and powered by the cigarette lighter in the boot area, after the M6+ has been running for a while.

[Peter_R]

Originally Posted by Pinewood

I eventually went for the ddpai M6+ after seeing techmoan's review, and doing some research on the various dashcam's available.

http://www.techmoan.com/blog/2016/6/...-ive-used.html

I particularly like ...
wifi,
gps,
magnetic mount for quick removal,
decent phone app for setup and video viewing,
OTA firmware upgrades,
time lapse and parkguard facility if connected to a battery pack.

It should arrive in 8-10 days time, so I'll post some pics/comments once installed.
It's quite likely I will also install a möbius dashcam in the rear, and powered by the cigarette lighter in the boot area, after the M6+ has been running for a while.

I watched the video and it looks good. I would have liked to hear the menu bits in English, but that is not a show stopper for me.

Look forward to your pictures and comments. I am particular interested how high up behind the mirror you can get it and how well the camera mount sticks to the knobbley dark area around the rear view mirror boss.

[Peter_R]

@Pinewood

After carrying out a lot of research, I have also just ordered the DDPai M6+ and a 64gb micro SD card and an adaptor to adapt my existing mobius cable (already threaded around the lining to the rear lighter socket) to the back of this dash cam.

I have already downloaded the app and created a new account in readiness for the installation that will be sometime after 1st November.

[Pinewood]

"Ding ding Pi" :-)

[Peter_R]

Originally Posted by Pinewood

"Ding ding Pi" :-)

Yes...Yes!

[Pinewood]

Because I regularly have passengers in the rear of the car, my preference is to wire it to the cigar lighter in the boot space. It also means if I treat myself to the Cellink B for Christmas, then the ding ding Pai can be powered constantly and everything is hidden in the underfloor storage area .

[mge92]

Just wire it into the sunroof and overhead light switch and piggy back on another electricity wire with a big enough fuse like the sunroof.

Thinkware and Blackvue are the best dashcams

[Peter_R]

Originally Posted by mge92

Thinkware and Blackvue are the best dashcams

That is a matter of opinion. Many other reviewers think otherwise.

[Peter_R]

My DDPai M6+ arrived on Saturday (29th October) morning from Amazon despite being told it was scheduled for Monday 31st October. I fitted it today (Sunday 30th October).

To experiment with camera positioning, I temporarily used heavy duty velcro (male and female hooks) on the face of the mount instead of exposing the 3M sticky part of the mount and sticking it permanently to the inside of the windscreen. This method works well because the camera is very light and the velcro is just as effective and holds it very still and allows me to move it to another position if I feel I need to. Naturally I would have to use more velcro.

If you are familiar with this camera, the camera attaches to the mount with magnets. The magnets are very very effective and it takes quite a pull to remove it from the mount. This tugging did not loosen the velcro which comes as male and female 2" wide strips (approx).

Anyway I have posted 3 pictures. I needed to be able to get at the memory card for obvious reasons and also being able move the mirror about meant I need to give sufficient clearance from the mirror.